Morning Brief – October 25, 2013

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Who would have thought the “house of sober second thought” would be the loudest place in Ottawa these days? But it is. Conservative efforts to oust three scandal-plagued senators of their own continued to meet hurdles and roadblocks yesterday, the latest being a gauntlet thrown by Edmonton MP Peter Goldring, who said he thinks the whole effort to toss Mike Duffy, Patrick Brazeau and Pamela Wallin before they are properly convicted in a court of law is unconstitutional. Goldring knows of what he speaks — sort of. He was charged (and later acquitted) for refusing to give a breathalyzer test, but the Tory caucus threw him out while he awaited his day in court. The Conservatives have already dumped the three senators from caucus, but the senate suspension goes much further, Goldring says. “It is a basic tenet of our constitution under the charter of rights and freedoms. I have great difficulty having that before the Senate. I think it puts a terrible precedent before the Senate and I believe it must be stopped before it goes to a vote.”

But wait, there’s more. Major rifts are opening in the Conservative party as annoyed senators and moderate MPs begin to push back against what is clearly a PMO-driven agenda. Don Plett lamented that he is considering voting against his leader’s wishes. Hugh Segal has challenged the constitutionality of taking what is, in effect, a quasi-judicial legal action without following the traditional rules of evidence.

Don’t look now, but the European financial markets are on fire. The Euro Stoxx 50 Index (SX5E) is up 21 per cent from its 2013 low, which it hit on June 24. Speaking of Europe, it’s simply amazing that the Canada-Europe Trade Agreement was announced just a week ago, yet it seems a distant memory given the events in Ottawa.

Back in Canada, while relations with Iran appear to be thawing, the temporary diplomatic fix — allowing Oman to handle Iranian consular services in Canada — appears not to be working.

In Tunisia, talks to end a worsening conflict between the Islamist Ennahda party, which was elected during the Arab Spring, and the secular opposition will get underway today after being delayed by violent protests earlier in the week.

Cleaning up Beijing’s air will devastate western China. The Beijing government recently announced a 1 trillion yuan ($163-billion) plan to clean up its deadly and expensive air pollution problem. Its success hinges mainly on sharp cuts in regional coal consumption. Converting coal to synthetic natural gas will use vast amounts of water from the already desiccated western provinces.

In Edmonton, NDP leader Brian Mason is pressing his Wildrose counterpart Danielle Smith to come clean on climate change. “What she is saying is kind of weasely words. It’s trying to have it both ways (by saying), ‘I personally don’t know if there is climate change or not, but we’re going to oppose (greenhouse gases) because other people think so.’”

Former Liberal MP Joe Fontana, now the indicted mayor of London, Ontario, is again under fire, this time for a “clear violation” of the Ontario Municipal Act. Fontana and six council members met in secret in February at a bar for what was clearly city business, not a social gathering, Marin found in a report issued Tuesday. “Backroom, backdoor, closed-door meetings — organized by and participated in by elected officials — are inimical to the democratic process.”

Here and there:

Commons question period kicks off at 11:15 this morning.

Gov. Gen. David Johnston and Sharon Johnston are in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia conducting State visits through October 26th.

Justin Trudeau holds a media availability in Washington, D.C., to discuss his first official visit to the U.S. capital since becoming Liberal Leader.

Federal Justice Minister Peter MacKay to release findings of an internal review into the case of Ernest Fenwick MacIntosh in Halifax, N.S.

Peter MacKay, the federal minister of justice, speaks on the benefits of the Canada-European Union trade agreement in Goffs, N.S.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada announces a proposal to improve the federal public service labour relations framework.

Senate Speaker Noël Kinsella holds several photo opportunities with Frank Horch, Minister for Economy, Transport and Innovation of the City of Hamburg.

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird, regional minister for Eastern Ontario, talks about proposed EU trade agreement in Ottawa as it relates to the tech sector.

Revenue Minister Kerry-Lynne Findlay will hold a press conference in Toronto on red tape reduction in support of Canadian small businesses.

Federal Employment Minister Jason Kenney gives speech in Balzac, Alta. on the benefits to Alberta’s producers, processors, ranchers and workers of the recent CETA deal before delivering remarks at the World Petroleum Council youth forum in Calgary.

In Featured Opinion this morning:

Our Tasha Kheiriddin was front and centre when Senator Marjory LeBreton was on her feet skewering Senator Duffy and his version of the prime minister’s involvement in his expenses scandal. The Harper government, she writes, is playing a longer game here, with an eye on Duffy’s anticipated lawsuit. “In advance of a civil case, the government will do everything to expose its case against Duffy. This could both discourage him from bringing the matter to court and, more importantly, try him in the court of public opinion, where there are no rules of evidence to hold the government back.”

The Washington Post’s Fareed Zakaria reports on China’s intensifying crackdown on dissent and the Communist Party’s programme of settling old scores with political opponents.

David Rothkopf at Foreign Policy aims a few daggers at the smug armchair spymasters in D.C. who have been justifying the NSA’s outlandish espionage overreach in friendly capitals. The blowback, he argues, will do incalculable damage to American interests.

Alan Williams, the former Defence ADM in charge of materiel, argues that military procurement is being tied in knots by the federal government injecting politics into the system.

Finally, remember the old adage “a fool and his money are soon parted,” and not just in the media and airline businesses? It would seem that little has been learned from the catastrophic economic collapse of 2007-08 when one looks at the slate of new things one can “invest” in. One glowing example: the future earnings capacity of an NFL football player, or online galleries touting unknown artists. It’s all part of the emerging “crowdfunding” craze that regulators in Washington are only now just getting to regulating. The Securities and Exchange Commission appears poised to propose rules allowing entrepreneurs to tap large numbers of ordinary investors for small amounts of capital, which were the missing piece from last year’s Jumpstart Our Business Startups (or JOBS) Act. As one analyst said, if you choose to invest, just consider it casino money and be prepared to walk away with a smile … and little more.

And with that, have a wonderful weekend. With some parents planning early Halloween parties, please drive carefully.